


We're Only Together Because of You

by zirkkun



Category: Fire Emblem Heroes, Fire Emblem Series
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Other, fight me, kiran is agender
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-15
Updated: 2019-04-30
Packaged: 2020-01-13 12:54:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18469387
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zirkkun/pseuds/zirkkun
Summary: “I'm sorry -- our child?”The day started out no different than normal, with Kiran summoning Heroes as they did every few days. However, today, a new Hero that Kiran had never heard of before appeared -- one that immediately claimed they and Alfonse were his parents. Kiran and Alfonse, not being particularly open to the idea in the slightest, originally had thoughts of sending the fourteen-year-old home as soon as possible, but found it difficult to actually commit to doing such a thing after seeing such a sulking face on the boy's face. So, what solution do they come up with?Well, they'll have to get married now, of course.





	1. A New Hero

A light shimmered from the ruins, a puff of smoke highlighting the tree-shaped stone with a green stone at its center. It was a normal day of summoning, with Kiran once again trying their luck toward pulling a Grima -- a Hero they’ve wanted ever since Feh told them he was able to be summoned. It seemed, however, that today was no different than any other day of the week: they did not obtain Grima. But, rather, a different new Hero entirely surfaced.

Kiran didn’t recognize them at all, but the Hero was clearly dressed in Askran attire, which made them all the more curious to figure out just who they were. It didn’t look like any of the new Heroes that Feh had mentioned had appeared, not remotely. Honestly, if they were to compare the Hero’s appearance to anyone else they knew, it would be --

“Nini!”

\-- themself.

The Askran-attired Hero stared with bright teal eyes towards Kiran, shouting the only name he had ever addressed them as. He could not have been more excited to see them after so long, but he soon realized that the Kiran he was looking at was much,  _ much _ younger than the one he knew back home. “Oh, Nini, do you recognize me?” he asked curiously, nervously curling some of his brunet hair around his finger.

Kiran, however, was distracted. The boy’s coat was similar to theirs, as was their hair and facial structure, but what stuck out the most were the blond tips. Kiran only knew one bloodline that had hair like that in Zenith, but to think of them and -- Kiran shook their head, tossing the idea aside. It wasn’t possible. He was far too distant to care for anything other than his own means. But, they noticed, was that a circlet around the back of his head? They, once again, shook their head. “I’m afraid I don’t,” Kiran answered honestly.

At first, the opposing figure frowned. But he soon forced his spirits back up, responding with, “I’m Freyr -- your son! I think you must have summoned me from a different time. You did tell me that you used to do that so very often in the past.” Kiran was taken aback by the first line alone, barely realizing the boy had kept talking. “Do you know where Dad is? I’d love to see him so young, too. You look so different!”

Kiran wanted to deny the possibility of ever having a child. They hated even thinking about it being true. But at the same time, they really didn’t want to upset this poor Hero they had mistakenly summoned. This “Freyr” would be sent home in due time, of course -- there was no way they had time to be responsible for a child, even if he did appear to be about fourteen or fifteen. Frankly, they weren’t really looking forward to finding out who the father of this boy was either, but it seemed that Freyr wasn’t going to have it any other way. Or, at least, Kiran couldn’t find themself able to deny the pleading puppy-dog eyes gazing towards them with an intense grin spread across his face. They sighed. “Alright, sure! Let’s go find Dad, shall we?” Gods, saying that alone made Kiran feel sick.

On the other hand, Freyr couldn’t have been more excited. He snatched the wrist of his nini, dragging them along. He hoped that his father wouldn’t be doing much other than patrolling the halls of the castle -- which, as he wandered down the familiar halls, found these to be far more empty than the ones he knew back home. Many people were missing as well, including a handful of his closest friends. It was sad to see, but he also wasn’t surprised: his aunt had once told him how Nini was very conservative when they summoned, only doing so when it was absolutely necessary. He could only assume, with that knowledge, that it meant many Heroes he grew to know over his childhood were possibly summoned towards the end of the Order's final battles, before Askr had retained peace once more. He wondered just how it was that his father decided on Kiran when that time came, seeing how quaint and reserved they were so long ago. Surely, Freyr thought, Kiran had done something to win over his heart, but he had never really thought to ask about it until now, when he wouldn't have been able to get an answer. Freyr didn't know for certain, but if he had to guess, he would say he was summoned twenty years in the past, when Nini was nineteen and Dad eighteen.

Lost in his thoughts, Freyr almost ran past his own father. He came to a stuttered halt once he spotted a fluttering white cape down the hall to his left. He noticed that his father's hair was far more vibrantly blue at this age. Freyr also took note of the circlet around his father's head: the same one that, once Freyr turned ten years old, had been gifted to him. He didn't notice, but a smile cracked across his own cheeks, filling him with nostalgia. “Dad!” Freyr yelled down the hall. The blue-haired figure didn't respond -- however, Kiran did. Their arm tensed instantly at the sound, to Freyr's concern. “Nini? Is something wrong?”

_ Very, very wrong _ , was what they wanted to say. But instead, Kiran kept their mouth shut, shaking their head violently with a vague, false grin across their cheeks. Freyr, once again, tried to call out to his father, to no avail. Kiran didn't want to do this, but at the same time, they wanted to rip off the bandage in one fell swoop: get this over with as quickly as possible so Freyr could be sent home to his real parents.

Kiran shrugged off the boy's grip, and yelled, “Alfonse!” This time, the walking figure stopped, turning with the lowest amount of care possible. His teal gaze wanted to be anywhere other than the presence of Kiran right now. The summoner walked forward down the hall, their “son” following close behind. “Alfonse, um, I have someone I want to introduce you to. I summoned him today and, well --”

“Dad! It's good to see you!” Freyr grinned.

Alfonse turned his attention to the brunet, shocked. He didn't speak for a very long time, merely staring at the boy -- who was a good three inches taller than him, he might add, or maybe he wouldn't, considering Alfonse was a bit self-conscious of his five-foot-seven height -- the boy who had just addressed him as… “Dad.” Alfonse was merely eighteen, amidst war, and still a measly prince. For what reason would he ever have a child now? He couldn't even fathom how it had happened, since he hadn't had any particularly close relationships with anyone in the past few years, especially not women.

“He's from the future,” Kiran clarified. “His name is Freyr. He claims to be our child.”

Alfonse paused, furrowing his eyebrows and turning directly to Kiran. “I'm sorry,  _ our _ child?”

Kiran could only nod hesitantly.

That made even less sense.

Freyr, meanwhile, fell hurt. This was his family, was it not? His nini Kiran and father Alfonse? Maybe, he wondered, they didn't always get along as well as he once thought they did. His father seemed so disinterested in both his and Kiran’s presence. Freyr wondered if, possibly, he was ruining things just now and making things worse off for his parents’ future. Or,  _ maybe _ , he thought with a shudder down his spine,  _ is this not just the past… but an alternate realm where Dad and Nini do not marry? Where I'm not supposed to exist? _ He didn't want to think about it, but it made sense. Nini used to summon the same Heroes from different realms all the time -- what made his existence from another universe so strange of a theory? It still, however, cut to realize that his own parents were not destined to be together no matter what. Were they not as in love as he believed they were? They always seemed inseparable. The three of them did everything together as a family.

Alfonse, amidst his disgust, contemplated leaving without another word on the topic. But, as he went to turn around, he caught sight of Freyr's eyes, aimed at the floor and glimmering with distress. Initially, it didn't bother him, until a memory sparked within his own mind.

_ “You're so dreadfully irresponsible, Alfonse. Join the Order of Heroes? What kind of a prince would put his own life on the line like that?” _

_ “Go, be out of my sight. You'll reside in the castle to the west with your sister and Anna. I cannot trust you to rule this alone.” _

_ “Gods, I wish I had another son to spare, since you're so willing to toss away your own damn life. You're such a grave disappointment.” _

Alfonse's heart twisted. His whole mentality on the situation altered. Surely, he was not this child's father, at least not now. But this child believed in the fact that he was. There was nothing he could have done to change that -- and therefore, he had no choice but to go along with it. Alfonse faced Freyr, forcing a half-hearted attempt at a smile. “My apologies, Freyr. I should have taken a moment to think about this more. Now that you mention it, it makes perfect sense that you would be my and Kiran's son.”

Freyr looked ecstatic. Kiran looked bewildered. They mouthed, “What are you talking about?” Alfonse merely shot back a look that said, “I'll explain in a minute.”

“Really?” Freyr asked. But Alfonse still seemed a bit wary -- Freyr couldn’t help but notice. “What’s with the sudden change of heart?”

Alfonse had not particularly prepared this far in advance. He had expected that the boy would have been excited and that would have been the end of it. Kiran looked to him with desperate eyes, almost begging him to not mess this up. Under a lot of pressure, partially self-imposed, Alfonse said the first thing that came to his mind: “Well -- Kiran and I are engaged.”

Freyr looked like he was going to cry with joy. Kiran looked like they were going to scream with fear. “Really?” Freyr repeated, more enthusiastically than last time.

Alfonse, his quick and reluctant gaze falling on to the desperately confused Kiran for a brief moment, continued the lie with a solid, “Yes.”

Immediately, Kiran grabbed the prince's wrist. “Alfonse, can I speak with you for a second?” He nodded, telling Freyr they'd be right back. Kiran led him as far away from the boy as possible, turning down the hall to the castle library, and leading the both of them to walk inside before slamming the door shut behind them. “What the hell were you thinking? Why would you lie about -- something like  _ that?! _ ”

“I - I don't know!” Alfonse answered, burying his face in his hands. Gods, what _ was _ he doing? He was insane. To suggest that he was going to get married to someone he couldn't have cared less about -- what was  _ wrong _ with him? “I just sort of had an instinctive thought, I guess? He looked so upset, I couldn't just tell him no.”

“But to suggest that we're  _ engaged? _ ”

“I know, I know!” Alfonse retorted. “It's my fault, alright? I said something really stupid. I get it. You don't have to keep reprimanding me.”

“You keep shrugging it off, but you realize there's no getting out of this, right?” Kiran answered. “Not unless we just send Freyr home.”

“What?” The sad expression across Freyr's face was implanted into Alfonse's mind. “No, we can't do that.”

Kiran seemed frustrated, but she understood why he would say that. Frankly, they didn't want to bare seeing the boy off with tears in his eyes now, either. They had only wished they had done it immediately rather than drag it out and introduce the boy to Alfonse. “Then we're stuck like this. There's no way out of it now.”

“We can explain it to everyone else, can't we?”

“Who's to say one of the other Heroes won't just tell Freyr the truth, then?” Kiran sighed, leaning their head into their palm. “This is not how I planned to get married. I didn't even get a choice, and now I'm stuck with you.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” Alfonse snapped, clearly insulted.

“What are you talking about, ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’ It's pretty obvious what it means!” Kiran growled. “You're so distant all the time, and everytime I try to talk to you, you just dismiss me. It's obvious you don't care about me, or any of the other Heroes for that matter. Except, I suppose, Freyr, it seems. There are many other people I'd rather marry -- so yes, I'm  _ stuck _ with  _ you! _ I hope you're happy.”

Alfonse wanted to fight back, but he really didn't know how to. He really hadn't thought out any of his actions from earlier at all. Frankly, it's not as though he wanted to be wedded to Kiran, either. Although he knew he would have to be married someday, he figured that he'd merely deal with whoever his father deemed was the best fit for the kingdom rather than make his own choice. Now to try and convince his father to let him marry the summoner, a mere member of the Order of Heroes who barely has knowledge of much in Askr aside from what they've seen on the battlefield… Maybe his father was right, he  _ was _ very irresponsible. “Look, we don't have much choice, I guess. We'll make the best out of it,” Alfonse suggested.

“How, exactly?”

“I - I don't know, but we'll figure out something.” Kiran didn't look impressed. “I'll figure out something.” Kiran looked less enthusiastic than before. “Something good will come from this, I swear my life on it, alright?”

“Good for who is the question,” Kiran sighed. “I'll tolerate the idea for now. As you said, we don't have much choice. I don't want to see Freyr upset either, but it also doesn't feel right to lie to him like this.” Their voice softened, the harsh expression on their face turning somber. “Nothing about this situation is good. We're lying for the sake of a child who claims to be our own. I wanted to send him home immediately to hopefully avoid anything wild from happening, but…” They shook their head. “But I didn't. And now we're stuck here.”

Kiran waved away the topic with their hand. “Whatever. I’m not going to worry about it right now. I have other things to attend to -- and I’m sure you do too, do you not?”

Alfonse merely nodded, and the two split ways for the day. Kiran stayed within the library for the time being, attempting to finalize some battle plans for the following week. A small team of Heroes would be heading out to protect the capital from Emblan troops that were, according to Anna, set to arrive sometime before the end of the month. Kiran figured that if they could create a solid brigade of units designed to defend against nearly anything and send them all to the capital to keep it safe that there would be little to worry about. However, considering the capital was a day’s travel out from the castle, Kiran had until next week to finalize plans.

And yet, they found themself distracted beyond belief.

A few notes had been scribbled down on the sheet of paper they were working on, but Kiran found that they were staring out the window and watching the wind blow around the tree branches, gazing as birds flew across the skies. This whole place had a new meaning to it, and the more they thought in silence, the more their heart warmed. Truly, some part of them didn’t mind the idea of marrying Alfonse -- but every  _ logical  _ part was aware it was a bad idea, which was the majority of their thoughts, but the ones currently silenced for the time being.

Had it not been for how coldly he treated them on a daily basis, Kiran might have had some more interest in the prince. But ever since they met, Alfonse refused to address them as more than a mere member of the Order. Initially, they had felt a level of remorse when Alfonse kept turning them away. They had kept trying to talk to him, over and over, to no avail. It wasn’t until Sharena approached Kiran and explained how Alfonse was still severely cut by the disappearance of his long-lost friend Zacharias that they finally backed off and stopped bothering him. Any thoughts considering Alfonse to be even  _ remotely _ attractive, out of respect for keeping distance, soon started to wean off, disappearing entirely. With that, they grew to slowly hate Alfonse, deep down, and picked out every awful piece of his personality, realizing that he cared little for anything at all.

And yet, now made it seem like those many months of hating him never happened.

The same thoughts that had obsessed their brain when they first arrived in Askr began to seep back. A different side to the prince -- a softer side, where he smiled genuinely and treated Kiran like they were worth talking to. Cliché thoughts of fairy tale princes harbored Kiran’s daydreaming as they wondered how he would look riding upon the back of a white horse. They let loose a gentle sigh.

But as soon as it happened, they cut off the thoughts with a loud groan, slamming their head on the table. “ _ What am I doing?! _ ” they complained aloud to no one. “I need to be prepping for war, not marriage…”

“Marriage?” another voice spoke up, sending a jolt of fear down Kiran’s spine. They had not realized anyone else was in the library. “You did look a bit more distant than usual, Kiran.”

The summoner picked their head off the table, meeting eyes with the blonde princess of Askr, Sharena. She seemed to have a puzzled look across her face, dressed without her armor for the evening. “Sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt you! But I  _ was _ looking for you,” she grinned. “So, that new mage you summoned today -- uh, I’m sure you’ve talked to him -- for some reason he keeps calling me ‘Auntie’? Do you know what that’s about?”

Kiran sighed. “So you’ve met Freyr, then, I see,” was their first response. “Yes, I do know. Freyr is, apparently, Alfonse’s son from the future. And, um, mine, I guess.”

Sharena originally merely nodded. “Oh, so how like Lucina is the daughter of Chrom despite being so close in age --” She only paused once she realized that Kiran had added on that following sentence. “Wait --  _ yours _ and Alfonse’s kid? No way!” she gaped. “Wait, wait, is that why you were mumbling about marriage earlier?” She gasped. “Wait, wait,  _ wait _ \-- don’t tell me, are you marrying my brother?”

“Don’t be so excited,” Kiran mumbled. “It isn’t willingly.”

The princess frowned. “Huh? What do you mean?”

“Alfonse was too worried about upsetting Freyr when they met today, since both of us were definitely not open to the idea of him being our child, and mistakenly told him that the two of us were going to get married soon to keep him happy. And since neither of us had the heart to tell Freyr that was a lie…” Kiran shrugged, an ironic smile spread across their cheeks. “Guess we’re going to get married.”

Sharena’s entire aura changed. She seemed, according to Kiran, some sort of place between disappointed and annoyed. Internally, though, she was just shocked, left unable to properly come up with a way to respond to this.  _ They’re both… so stupid _ , she thought.

“I don’t know, though,” Kiran whispered.

“Don’t know what?” Sharena asked.

“If…” They shook their head. “No, nevermind, it’s nothing.”

Sharena, however, was far too interested to let the summoner get away with that. She pulled up a chair from a nearby table, plopping herself next to Kiran with a bright grin across her face. “Go ahead, you can tell me anything! I promise I won’t tell a soul.”

They weren’t so certain, but the princess was incredibly insistent that Kiran tell them at least  _ something _ . “Fine,” they sighed, staring out the window. “It’s just that… I don’t know how I feel about this marriage.”

Sharena let loose a soft sigh. “Um, maybe you should Freyr the truth, then…?”

“No,” Kiran responded, “the other way.” The princess wasn't sure what they meant. Kiran turned, facing the desk they had been previously working at, picking up the mangled piece of charcoal they had been writing with and spinning it around their fingers. “This feels weird to talk about, since you're his sister, but… Prince Alfonse. I - I've never particularly hated him.”

Sharena gasped, covering her mouth with her hands. “Oh my gosh, really? You like my brother?”

“I didn't say it like that…”

“Unfortunately, I don't think he reciprocates those feelings, Kiran.”

“You know, I already got that --”

“My brother's incredibly hospitable, but I haven't seen him harbor actual feelings towards someone since we lost Zacharias, so I don't know that --”

“Sharena,” Kiran broke. “I'm not concerned about that. We're already stuck together.” They huffed, dropping the charcoal stick to the table. “I just want him to treat me like a person for once and not just someone here for the Order, alright? That's my only concern. Had it not been for that…” They shook their head. “Nevermind.”

“Marriage wouldn't be so bad of an idea?” Sharena hummed.

Kiran's cheeks reddened. They nodded.

With a mischievous grin, Sharena got up from her seat, sliding it back to the table where it belonged. “Let me see what I can do about that,” she announced.

“P - please don't approach Alfonse about this!” Kiran begged.

“Oh, I'm not going to, don't worry about that.” She pat the summoner's head. “But… well, I'll just see what I can do about it.” She gave them a quick wink before leaving the library.

Kiran decided to pack up for the evening.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Sharena promised she wouldn't tell Alfonse about Kiran's hidden feelings for him, she didn't say that she wouldn't tell Anna to go and speak to him about their current "relationship." Anna leaves off on a quest to discover how Alfonse truly feels about the Order of Heroes's summoner.

Alfonse let loose a large groan the second he closed the library door behind himself. “Just what have I gotten myself into this time?” he mumbled.

The more he thought about it, the more he realized just how odd of an action this was for him to take. What made him say such a thing so suddenly? What made him even _think_ about it in the first place? Gods, he just wanted to call it a day and go to sleep, but unfortunately, the sun was barely at its highest point, and he had much left to do before it set. He figured he should first approach Freyr once more, since he did in fact tell the boy he'd return after he had finished talking with Kiran.

After making his way down the hall, he found Freyr, who had continued his search in finding other unsuspecting family members and expecting them to know exactly who he was. The boy was truly naïve, to say the least, either that or ridiculously optimistic. He wondered where he could have possibly gotten such a personality from, as it certainly couldn’t have been himself or Kiran.

“Auntie Sharena? You don't recognize me either?”

Well... maybe Freyr’s “aunt” was a considerable answer to the question.

Sharena pondered, trying her best not to outright tell this new hero that there was something wrong with him while also indirectly telling him that there was definitely something wrong with him. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of her brother conveniently walking towards her. She waved her arms aggressively in order to get his attention, but all she got was a glare in response. Clearly, he already had seen her.

Freyr turned around once he noticed Sharena was looking off in the distance behind him. “Oh, you’re back!” he declared. “What did you and Nini discuss?”

Alfonse tried to dismiss the topic with a vague smile. “It’s nothing all that important, Freyr, you needn’t worry about it,” he replied, immediately turning to Sharena with a serious expression. Even she was a little shocked to see the sudden change. “Sharena, I recommend that you go talk with Kiran about this situation.”

She blinked, uncertain of what he was referring to. He quickly pointed his gaze at Freyr while facing Sharena, telling her exactly what she needed to know without saying anything out loud. Her mouth fell into a silent _Oh!_ before she nodded. “Oh, yes, of course. Where is Kiran now?”

“I was last talking with them in the library. I would head in that direction first. They stayed behind from what I remember.”

Sharena replied with a silent thank-you before wandering down the hall. Freyr turned his attention back to his father, narrowing his gaze as he tried to analyze the expression on Alfonse’s face. Something about it felt insincere, the way he was talking, the way he was smiling; but he couldn’t quite place his finger on it. But, as he thought about it, this _was_ his father in the _past_ \-- of _course_ there would be a few things off here and there. Brushing away his concern as quickly as a wave washes away sand, his toothy grin returned.

“I did return like I said I would,” Alfonse began saying to Freyr, “however, I do have many duties to attend to for the remainder of the day. I’m afraid that means I cannot do much more with you today aside from show you to the east wing, where the rest of the Heroes live.”

Freyr was off-put by how formally Alfonse spoke. It was almost as if he was speaking to one of the servants in the castle rather than a family member. He frowned, but as usual, tried his best to muster up some positive from the situation. Initially, he couldn’t come up with much of anything to say to lighten his father’s attitude, and merely nodded with the anticipation of following him in a short minute.

Alfonse noticed the dull expression across Freyr’s face, but he wasn’t entirely sure why it would be there. Was it because he wouldn’t be able to spend the day with him? He sighed. It wasn’t as though that was within his control -- Alfonse had not anticipated Kiran to summon his _son_ into the Order of Heroes today, so there was no way his schedule could have been fixed in order to account for it. For a brief moment, he wondered if he could have switched anything around in order to make some space, but it just didn’t seem possible. There were too many things that needed to be done -- one of them, newly added, was to write a letter to his own father explaining how he suddenly, and rather unexpectedly, had gotten engaged.

Alfonse led Freyr along. Close behind, the boy thought to himself in silence, trying to muster up anything he could talk to his father about for the brief stroll it would take to get to the east wing. Within a few seconds, he was reminded of the first impression he got from his younger nini, and how opposite it was from his younger father. Originally, he had thought it would be impossible to ask about how these two had decided to get married unless he went back home first, but apparently it was more likely than he had thought. With the newfound knowledge that they were engaged, he could have asked right now if he wanted! Suddenly afloat with excitement, Freyr scurried up alongside Alfonse, beaming at him with interest. The prince merely raised his eyebrow. “Hey, Dad, can I ask you a question?”

Alfonse still wasn’t used to being addressed as “Dad.” He, however, still forced a smile and replied, “Go ahead, what is it?”

“How did you decide you wanted to marry Nini?”

Alfonse was not prepared.

He had little to nothing available as a response that wouldn’t instantly break the boy’s heart. Why was he curious about something like that, anyway? Noticing that his own step was slowing from shock, Alfonse picked up his pace and responded with the only possible buffer question he could muster up in a few seconds. “Was this not something that the me from your future told you about?”

Freyr merely shook his head. “You never really said anything about it. I didn’t really think about it until I came here and realized how much different you two were in the past. You and Nini couldn’t be more opposite from each other.”

“What makes you say that?” asked Alfonse, genuinely curious. He didn’t find Kiran to be too much different from himself.

“Well, the first impression I got from Nini when I came here was that they were really quiet and easily shaken. But you’ve always been so level-headed and serious about everything, even here.” Alfonse had to stifle back laughter at Freyr’s description of Kiran. “So I just wondered how people as differently as you two managed to fall in love!”

The prince’s heart skipped a beat once Freyr said “fall in love.” It made him more uncertain as to what would be the proper response to something like this. Facing forward, Alfonse searched his mind for any sort of reply that would sound even slightly genuine. Maybe he could have talked something positive about Kiran’s personality? But, unfortunately, in his avid attempts to avoid most of the Order as a whole, Alfonse didn’t know much about Kiran as it was to begin with. He didn’t want to say a weak answer such as, “I don’t know,” as that might only prompt Freyr to ask more questions or become more aware of the lie being told directly to his face. He tried to list out things he valued Kiran for -- their intelligence, tactical ability, how easily they bonded with Heroes…

Then something struck Alfonse. Once, he had spoken with the Hero Lucina, who complained to him that her father would never explain to her how he and her mother met before, despite how much she asked.

Alfonse, taking inspiration from Chrom, gave Freyr a grin, and merely stated, “Don’t you think you’re a little young to worry about something like that?”

Freyr’s jaw dropped. “Dad -- you can’t be serious. I’m fourteen! I’m plenty old enough to know that!”

Alfonse playfully shook his head. “Hm, but are you truly, now?”

“Dad, please!”

But the prince merely laughed in response, still refusing to properly answer the question given to him. “I’m afraid the question will have to be held off for another time. It’d take far too long to explain the answer, considering we’ve arrived at the east wing of the castle. I have other things to attend to for the day, Freyr. But I’m sure the other Heroes can keep you company for the time being.”

Freyr wasn’t happy with this response, and in retaliation, said, “Fine. I’ll just ask Nini about it later.”

Simultaneously, Alfonse was curious and worried. What would Kiran say to Freyr? Would they come up with something nice to say about Alfonse? Part of him believed that couldn’t be true -- the two of them weren’t particularly close outside of their work on the battlefield. The other part merely _hoped_ Kiran couldn’t come up with anything, otherwise Alfonse would just feel terrible that he couldn’t have done the same for them. He sighed in response, answering with a calm, “I’m sure they’ll say the same thing.”

But Freyr knew they wouldn’t. His curiosity was far too peaked at this point to let _both_ of his parents turn him down on this question.

Nevertheless, the two split for the day. While he did feel a bit relieved to no longer have to talk to anyone else for the remainder of the day, Alfonse was already so tired from the morning alone that he truly reconsidered putting aside the rest of his duties and sleeping. However, he knew that unfortunately wasn’t possible, and would be highly irresponsible. Yet, he figured he would start out with the least physically demanding of his tasks for the evening -- even if that happened to be writing the letter to his father.

Once he reached his private quarters, snatching a piece of parchment and some ink with a quill to write with, Alfonse sat himself at his personal desk with all the intention of writing. However, the second his quill hit the paper, it sat without movement, ink pooling into a black puddle. He stared, mind blank.

Originally, he went to toss the ruined paper aside, but instead decided to use it for scratching an initial draft. Alfonse knew that there was no way he’d be able to properly write a letter to his father in one go, especially not one about _this_ subject. So he began, best he could, merely venting his thoughts.

 

_Dear Father,_

_I am writing to you with concern over a recent event that has occurred. I_ ~~_regret_ ~~ _write to inform you that I’ve recently gotten engaged_ ~~_._ ~~ _~~t~~ o Kiran. I realize that I never approached you about this before it happened, and merely hope that you’ll accept the choice that I’ve made. _

 

Alfonse stopped his writing, staring at the beginning to the letter and re-reading it over and over, more and more dissatisfied with how it was written every single time, but unsure of how else it could be worded.

Within a few seconds, the parchment was slipped out from his grip, pulled away by another person. Taken aback, Alfonse twisted almost immediately to meet eyes with the red-eyed, red-haired commander of the Order of Heroes. She flashed a toothy grin to the prince before reading without a spoken word. Not knowing quite how he should respond in a situation like this, Alfonse remained completely still, afraid of what Anna would say to having read the letter.

“Wow, Alfonse,” she started. “Could you sound like you care a little less?”

He felt his face heating from embarrassment, going to grab the paper from her grip, but Anna merely pulled it out of his reach. “Do you even know what’s going on?” he demanded.

“Of course I do. It’s not hard to figure out what’s going on around here. It’s part of my job, really.”

“Sharena told you, didn’t she?”

Anna ignored his question. “Anyway, let me help you in writing this letter. I’m sure I could whip up one for you in no time.”

“Commander, I’m not quite sure that’s a good --”

“Ah, ah. Now, which one of us is experienced in the field of designing things purely to specific tastes?”

Alfonse sighed. “Writing a letter to my father is much different than designing a product…”

“Nonsense. They’re similar enough. Besides -- it seems to be closer to any knowledge on the subject that _you_ have.” Anna smirked, waving her hand as she silently asked for a blank sheet of parchment. Reluctantly, Alfonse gave her one, and she ordered he wait patiently -- without peeking! -- as she wrote out the “better” version of the letter. He spent the time staring at the back of his wooden doorway, thinking to himself about the rest of the things he had left to do for the day. Gods, he had so much to do, and so little energy to do any of it.

“And -- done!” Anna announced, slamming the letter into Alfonse’s chest. He let out a hefty grunt, barely catching the parchment before it fluttered to the floor. “I’m sure you’ll appreciate it.” He began reading right away.

 

_Dear Father,_

_I have some invigorating news to share with you. Recently, I have become engaged to Kiran, the Order of Heroes’s summoner and tactician. Although I realize this has not been brought up to you beforehand, I still plead that you would be willing to give us your blessing in marriage. Kiran is so important to me that I cannot even put it into words, and I would like you to realize this. The two of us will be headed towards the capital before the end of the month, so if you wish to discuss this with us, please let me know._

_Sincerely,  
_ _Alfonse_

 

“Well, what do you think?” toyed Anna.

Alfonse raised his head from the parchment, wary on its contents. “It… could use a bit more re-working,” he stated.

Anna pouted. “Alright, then, what do you think needs to be changed about it?” Alfonse barely opened his mouth to speak when she quickly added, “And don’t say ‘Everything.’”

He forced a sigh. “It doesn’t sound like I wrote it,” he murmured.

“That’s because I wrote it like you actually _cared_ about Kiran,” Anna sneered. “Let’s work this out -- what’s something you actually _do_ like about them?”

“Again with this question?” Alfonse groaned. “It’s been the second time I’ve been asked this question today, and yet still, I can’t really come up with an answer…”

“Nothing at all? Alfonse, this is your fiancé we’re talking about. You’ve got to have something.”

“You are aware why I’m engaged, right?” he asked.

“Of course,” Anna smirked, “but I’m also fully aware that this was your idea to begin with, was it not?” Alfonse averted his gaze. “Now, you claim that you merely said this because of Freyr, but I mean, the idea had to come from _some_ where --”

“Enough!” he snapped, raising from his seat. He let out a harsh breath, leaning over his desk. Anna was left a bit shocked at his sudden reaction, but didn’t dare say another word on the subject until -- or even unless -- he brought it back up himself. She truly didn’t mean to anger him; she merely wanted to understand what it was that possessed him to “propose” to Kiran today, but it seemed that such an answer wasn’t going to be as easy to pry from him as she had hoped. What she didn’t know was that there was, in reality, no real reason behind his action. Alfonse was merely rash and said the first thing that came to his mind. He hated seeing people upset, no matter how much he claimed to care little about others. In a way, it was part of why he couldn’t bring himself to become close with anyone else in the Order. Of course, he couldn’t even begin to fathom the thought of losing someone else again. But even so, he didn’t want to see any of the Heroes less than cheerful and glee, even during these times of war. He’d sacrifice every bit of his joy for the sake of all others.

But he didn’t think that he’d one day bring someone else down with him on that reckless path.

“The thing is,” Alfonse breathed, trying to calm himself as he spoke, “I don’t know much about Kiran, truly. We’re not close, as you can probably assume from knowing me. I’d love to be able to tell you something I like about them, but I just… don’t know anything.”

Anna could hear the genuine pain in his voice. She hadn’t heard Alfonse so purely upset since his heart was broken from Zacharias, Prince Bruno, leaving him once he finally appeared again. Part of her felt bad for bringing the engagement up at all, especially in the joking and casual manner that she did.

She glanced very briefly to the parchment that had fallen to the wooden desk, a spark of inspiration hitting her instantly. “That’s a solvable problem, you know,” she began.

“How so, might I ask?” Alfonse questioned.

“A date,” Anna sang.

He met her gaze, expression not particularly impressed with her suggestion. “And just when will either of us have the time to do something like that? Embla is headed our way as we speak. I have countless other things to do yet today, as I’m sure Kiran does as well. We don’t have the free time to spend merely relaxing and getting to know each other.”

“Let me do something about that,” Anna said. “Your schedule is cleared for the day.”

“What?” Alfonse blurted. “Anna, please, there’s so much that needs to be done yet --”

“And we have an army’s worth of people who are willing to help you at any chance they get. I’ll assign some Heroes to do some extra work. I’m sure they’ll be more than fine with you and Kiran taking a short break.”

Alfonse frowned, but he didn’t have much else to follow up with. “What about Kiran?”

“As far as I am aware, they were busy attempting to try and come up with a brigade to head towards the capital by next week. I specifically use the word ‘attempting’ because, well, they were _pretty_ distracted, to say the least.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Distracted?”

Anna rolled her eyes. “Honestly, Alfonse, you couldn’t be _more_ dense. Long story short, I’m sure some other tacticians like Soren or Robin could do their work just fine. And I’m _certain_ that Kiran, too, would be more than happy to spend the afternoon with you.”

Although he still wasn’t quite sure what she meant, and was honestly a bit frustrated at how she assumed he was aware of how Kiran could have been distracted, he merely prompted, “Even if that were the case, I still don’t know how we would even spend the day. What is there to do?”

“Well, that much I can figure out for you. How would _you_ like to spend the day?”

“Getting everything done,” Alfonse answered truly.

“No, no,” Anna shook her head. “How would you spend the day if you were just relaxing? If, say, there was nothing else to do?”

Thinking for a moment, Alfonse confidently said, “I do enjoy studying in the library from time to time.”

“Gods, this is hopeless,” Anna sighed. “That’s not really a two-person thing, Alfonse.”

“Well, it can be…”

“Not really. Not to mention, I don’t think I’ve ever once seen Kiran reading in their spare time.” Anna pondered for a moment, wondering to herself what she _has_ seen Kiran doing in their pastime before. More often than not, they’re speaking with the other Heroes, but Kiran is almost never the one holding the majority of the conversation. They’re a great listener, but for this situation, that wouldn’t really bode over well. Without Alfonse being much of a talker, Anna cannot believe for a second that the two of them could hold even a remotely decent discussion. She needed something tangible, some kind of activity the two of them could do that would still allow them to interact like normal human beings with each other. Then, out of the blue, a discussion she had with Kiran once struck her.

_“Back home, I used to really admire artists. I wouldn’t have called myself an artist, though others would argue with me about that, but I really did love the work they did. I dabbled in it with dreams of becoming professional, but I suppose I’ll have to hold off on that for a while…”_

“Hey, Alfonse, you know how to, uh, do art, right?” Anna asked.

Alfonse blinked. “Well, sort of. I’ve been told it’s ‘plain,’ though.”

“Right, right. Anyway, I came up with a solution: you two are going to spend the afternoon doing art.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Um, and how exactly is _that_ a two-person activity compared to studying?”

“First of all, I know you both enjoy it, so it sparks a conversation. Second of all, studying requires a lot more focus and interest in the topic -- you can kind of talk about other things while drawing or something, right?” She nodded confidently. “Yes, that’s going to be the afternoon for you and Kiran. I’ll tell them about it as well. I’m sure they’ll be ecstatic.”

Even after Alfonse agreed to it, he wasn’t really certain that it would work out. Actually, the more he thought about it, the more he found himself becoming nervous.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so i once read on the wiki that Alfonse is good at art but I cannot for the life of me remember where that was in the game, probably and old paralogue i don't remember, but is my bad memory going to stop me from using it as a plot point? nope.
> 
> also, for those asking about part 2 to be posted, well here it is! As of right now, I plan to post approximately every two weeks until the semester is over -- which, fortunately, is pretty close.

**Author's Note:**

> I just??? Had an idea one day???  
> Might include Sharena and Anna's future children in this as well but I'm not entirely certain at the moment. Don't have much designed for them as of right now.
> 
> Thanks for reading!!


End file.
